The DiCecco Daily:Putting Into Perspective A Wild Day Of Eagles Injury News

Hey, what's going on, everybody? Welcome in to another episode of DiCecco Daily. It's Andrew DiCecco, Eagles Beat Reporter for insidethebirds.com. And it was a wild Thursday at the Jefferson Health Training Complex, because the Eagles received some very difficult news. They will be without quarterback Jalen Hurts. Certainly for Sunday, but indefinitely with a superficial blood clot, the team released an announcement earlier this afternoon, and I'll read it for you because it's very important. It says, on Thursday, October 8th, Jalen visited the training room after practice requesting treatment for his calf. He informed the medical staff he had been cleated during the Rams game on October 4th. This was just the first treatment session for the calf injury following the game. After having practice in full, both Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday, Jalen received treatment practice in full and was added to the practice report. Out of an abundance of caution, an ultrasound was performed on Saturday following the team's flight to London and walkthrough. The ultrasound revealed a superficial blood clot. Our medical staff and doctors in London reviewed the results and concluded that activity and mobility were important and that Jalen could safely play. Doctors recommended a follow-up ultrasound within 72 hours of the game and the return flight to Philadelphia. Jalen played without limitation in the game Sunday, received treatment on Monday and Tuesday, and practiced in full on Wednesday as reflected in the practice report. Throughout our time in London and this week, we have remained in communication with the league office regarding the matter. On Wednesday night, a follow-up ultrasound revealed movement in the small blood clot. Jalen will be out for Sunday's game vs. the Panthers as we determine the appropriate course of treatment. His health and safety are our highest priority. Scary situation, needless to say, with Jalen Hurts. Going back to last week, on Friday, he popped up on the injury report with a calf injury, and he was listed as a full participant. Played in the game, though I can't imagine traveling to London on a six, seven-hour flight is good for anyone. But of course, when you're dealing with an injury of that magnitude, and then you play the game, and I understand that there's been a lot of discourse this week as to why Jalen Hurts didn't run as much. He ran twice for, I think, two yards. And Sean Mannion earlier this week mentioned that the game plan really focused on being more pass-oriented against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and this probably explains the rationale behind it. But Jalen Hurts talked a little bit about the injury, and he mentioned that he got quote-unquote nicked against the Rams. And as you heard there in the team's announcement, he got cleated in the Rams game, and he spoke about it very briefly on Wednesday, the injury, and he said it was a very unique experience to say the least. I don't want to get into the details of kind of leading up to the game or whatnot, but got nicked up in the Rams game. And for those who were at the game, they mentioned that Jalen was slow to get to the practice, to get to the game field on Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and he got there, you know, he took the field right before kickoff, and really all he offered on Wednesday about that was trying to rest. So clearly he was hampered by that, and he played the full game, and he toughed it out. I think he deserves a lot of credit for that. That's a warrior out there battling, and he put the Eagles in position to win that game, and then he gets to practice this week, Wednesday. He was still listed with the calf injury, but he was a full go. And then this injury news drops like a bombshell Thursday around just before one o'clock in the afternoon. And obviously the priority here for the Eagles, and you always feel for the person first on a human level, but it's about getting him the proper treatment and figuring out the most appropriate course of action to ensure that he can make a healthy and speedy recovery here. And I mean, the hits keep coming for the Eagles. I know Jordan Milata after the game mentioned that last week was like a week from hell. You see your right tackle retire, your left guard slash center, who you've worked with for years, and he gets traded away. There's a lot of attrition parsing through the roster. And Jordan Milata is pretty much the last man standing. And he said, yeah, I think I spoke too soon. I think I jumped the gun there. And Jordan Milata is someone that is more or less the team's spokesperson. He's the guy that you go to when you want to hear about sort of the state of the team, and he's keeping everything together as best he can. I think that he has really done a good job of helping a lot of the younger players remain focused and instill confidence in them. Jake Majors, for example, spoke to me about Jordan and how he sort of helped him prepare for that first game and settle him in and get him locked in in those situations. But this is a really challenging time for the Eagles. You may look at it as another injury that they're dealing with, but it really speaks to a lot of the adversity that they're going through. They've now lost their leader, their starting quarterback for an undetermined amount of time. You can't put a timeline on that. You don't quite know what the scenario is, but it's a very serious injury and pretty scary. So, I want to find what Jordan Milata had to say because some of his quotes here are really strong. And here, there it is. You did call it the week from hell. Do you have to manufacture? And the question was trying to manufacture the positivity, the energy and all that. And Jordan, before he says that, he goes, I think I was a little early. I might have jumped the gun on that one. Holy cow. Yeah, this is, it's the NFL, man. It's the gift that keeps on giving. Might have jumped the gun on that one. And he mentioned, when talking about his energy, he said, again, I think it comes naturally. I think it's just authenticity. It's just who I am. I reflect on how I handled the week last week, and then correct even, not just the game, but just how I led during the week. And I thought, you know, I should just come in with high energy this week regardless, and this is before the news. And he talked about a lot of the younger players and what his focus is right now. So he said he's focused on, you know, getting guys like Jake Majors and Willie Lampkin and all those guys dialed in, and making sure that he's that steadying presence that keeps things moving forward, and he knows how to really respond to different challenges. And I can't say enough about what I've observed from Jordan Milato this season in terms of just his leadership being a pillar of stability, a calming presence, and a tremendous mentor and resource for a lot of young players, but also an example for maybe some veteran players who haven't gone through this. And as we sort of pivot to what this means in the immediacy, well, that means that Tanner McKee is going to be the starting quarterback. And Tanner mentioned that Jalen sort of turned to him in the locker room and said, looks like you're going to be the guy. Hey, football is heating up and everyone's pulling up because PrizePix has all your picks in one place. New users, get yourself a head start with PrizePix's best offer yet. 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Cheaper, cleaner, limitless energy is out there. Let's find more ways to use it. Head over to energylimitless.com to learn more about your energy options. Tanner said that they spoke about the reason why, and he said he appreciated Jalen and instilled confidence in him. He mentioned that he's ready for this opportunity. He's comfortable with his offense. What's different now compared to some of the week 18 games that he's gone out there and played? He said, I'm a little older. I don't know a little bit more. He mentioned his comfort level and Shawn Manion's offense. And he also mentioned that when asked about the quarterback competition between himself and Andy Dalton, that it was healthy. And he noted how good of a teammate Andy was. And if he saw something that he reflected back on, maybe that he saw in 2018, he would say, this is what I saw back in 2018, and this is what I liked versus this. And sort of just being a good teammate amidst the, you know, the positional battle they were going through. So Tanner McKee will take the field Sunday afternoon, a different quarterback. We'll see what he has in store. Now, he did not have a particularly good training camp. Neither did Andy Dalton. Andy Dalton was named the number two quarterback. And then leading up to the Rams game, they flip-flopped, and they went with Tanner McKee as the number two. And then last Friday, they released Andy Dalton. So, right now, they have Tanner McKee, and they have Cole Payton. So, what I'm most curious to learn about Tanner McKee in this matchup is, how is he in terms of processing? Because it looked like he was thinking quite a bit in training camp. Maybe his mind was racing. You have to make quick decisions. You have to throw with anticipation. And it seemed like for someone who was going through a totally new system, something that he hasn't really been asked to do at the NFL level, it looked like he was swimming a little bit. Now I don't say that to alarm anyone. I say that to tell you where he was at that time. Now full transparency, we don't get to see the quarterbacks in action. We don't see practice like we did in training camp. And that's sort of standard practice. That's par for the course. That's how it is everywhere. But we don't get to see the full allotment of practice. I can't tell you how he's responded since then or how he's really taken to this offense. What's different about his game. All I have to go off of is what I saw in training camp in the preseason. Now, this is interesting because a lot of the players this week that Tanner repped with in the preseason, he's going to be out there with. So I'm talking about Darius Cooper, potentially Jake Majors. And if Jake does in fact become the center for the second week in a row, well, he's worked a ton with Tanner McKee in the preseason. So there's a little bit of a bonus there. He's handed off to Damian Pearce in the summer and briefly in the preseason. Pearce only played in the final preseason game and had four carries there. So it's not doom and gloom, but this is another shot to the body for a team that it feels like couldn't afford to withstand another injury. And now it's at the most important position in all of sports quarterback. And it's not a hamstring. It's not a shoulder. It's a blood clot. So I just want to reiterate the importance of this injury. And first and foremost, beyond his contributions on the field, you have to feel for Jalen Hurts, the person on a human level. This is a scary situation. And you hope he's able to make a healthy and speedy recovery, as I mentioned. And then the on-field stuff is all secondary. But it was certainly a shock to a lot of the teammates that were speaking in the locker room on Thursday. And it just adds another element to this season that just when you think there can't be any more curveballs thrown, certainly this early, here we are week six, and we're now having this conversation. So, I mean, there's not a whole lot that that can happen that will surprise me at this stage. But the Eagles just have two quarterbacks on the roster, and Tanner McKee and Cole Payton. Now, Andy Dalton was released, and yeah, I mean, he apparently has other options. That's some of the reports out there. So, not a slam dunk that he comes back. Certainly not a slam dunk, and that would put the Eagles in a predicament, because you can't go into a game with just two quarterbacks, and there's no one that you can really sign this late in the game, especially if they don't have any experience in this system, that's gonna be able to give you sort of a comfort level of having them on hand. You don't have any practice squad quarterbacks, there's nobody that's signed to this point, and we're going on Friday, so it puts the Eagles in a really difficult spot, and it's ironic because they carried four quarterbacks for so long, they release Andy Dalton, and then Jalen Hurts comes up with the blood clots, just a really odd and tricky situation that the Eagles are going to have to find a way to navigate through. One thing I will say, and I know that Nick Sirianni has gotten quite a bit of criticism this week based off of his late game scenario, decision making, game management and all that, and rightfully so, rightfully so, but you also have to say that the team came out there ready to play, and given all that had gone on the previous week, the retirements, the trades, the attrition, the team was locked in and ready to go, and they didn't come out flat, they didn't pack it in, they didn't look like they would rather be elsewhere, or they didn't have a woe was me mentality. They went out there and they took it to the Jacksonville, they gave them their best shot, and for half of football, that first half, they looked like a team that wanted it more, and they were taking advantage of the coaching shortcomings of Liam Cohen and Trevor Lawrence not playing his best, and they just couldn't get the job done, but they had that game won, and I think if Nick Sirianni is going to be criticized for his late game decision making, he also has to be recognized for his voice resonating and having the guys ready to play in a really challenging spot. So that's where the Eagles are going into this game against the Carolina Panthers, and they're a decent football team, and they have some good players on that side, namely quarterback Bryce Young, who has done a really nice job this season. He's sort of coming into his own. You saw the growth last season a little bit, especially late in the year, and now you're seeing it really just come to fruition. But let's get to the injury report, because not practicing on Thursday, running back Saquon Barkley, hamstring, defensive back Michael Carter, abdomen, outside linebacker AJ Eponessa back, outside linebacker, Jalex Hunt, knee, ankle, quarterback Jalen Hurts, calf, running back Will Shipley, foot, and wide receiver Don Tavian Wicks, hamstring. So Wicks was listed as limited with the hamstring on Wednesday, and then today he was a non-participant, or today he was a non-participant. Now, last week, last Thursday, he was limited with the hamstring, and then on Friday, he was full go. So we'll see where things stand on Friday, but that pop up on a Thursday to not practice, that's another body shot that the Eagles are gonna have to see what it all means moving forward. These hamstring injuries, man, keep popping up, and that's a position right there that the Eagles can't afford to be light at. They already have Devontae Smith, and I'll get to him in a second, who was listed as limited. That was an upgrade, but we'll get to it, limited. Cornerback Jacory and Bennett knee, wide receiver Hollywood Brown ankle, tight end Grant Calcutera back, guard Landon Dickerson knee, outside linebacker Jonathan Grenard ankle, tight end EJ Jenkins toe, center Drew Kendall knee, wide receiver Devontae Smith hamstring toe, guard Tylerstein shoulder, tight end Eli Stowers quad. So you don't have Dontavian Wicks available for Thursday's practice, but you do get Devontae Smith. And what I will say about Devontae is that he has been visible in the portion of practice open to reporters for the past couple of weeks. He was working on a jugs machine on Wednesday on a far field when we were out there. And today he was also spotted on a far field. And obviously if he got some limited work, that's a positive development. But again, with these hamstring injuries, they can be tricky. And I want to always throw that out there because sometimes, you know, you have to be careful with that. And we also don't know what limited means in terms of like, how much work were they actually doing out there and all of that. But clearly he got a minimal amount of work. And that is certainly progress relative to where he's been the past week and a half. And of course, he missed the previous two games with this hamstring injury. And he sustained it back in the summer. So it has lingered a little bit. And you got to be careful with that, because you don't want to further aggravate it or make things more challenging in terms of getting back to full strength. So we'll see where Devontae Smith lands on Friday. Fall is the season where everyone gets busier. More calls, more customers, more chances for something to slip through the cracks. And staying ahead means having the right system, not just working harder. That's why today's episode is brought to you by Quo. Spelled Q-U-O, the business phone system built so you never miss a call. 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So that is a little tricky. Now, so if it were me, the offensive line that I would roll with would be Jordan Milat at left tackle, Landon Dickerson at left guard, Jake Majors at center, assuming Drew Kendall doesn't play, right guard Tyler Steen, right tackle Markel Bell. That's the lineup that I would roll with. And if Markel Bell was struggling, I would not hesitate to get Fred Johnson in there, knowing that the Carolina Panthers have Jalen Phillips and some players who can really wreak havoc. And when you have a guy like Tanner McKee back there, who is not mobile, you maybe have to make some alterations that you wouldn't ordinarily have to do if Jalen Hurts were back there. Just some of my early thoughts about this game, and we'll see with those players who had their practice window open, whether or not the Eagles choose to activate them to the 53, which players, some, none, who would be. But I can tell you that they need Lannan Dickerson and they need Grant Calcutera. And yes, they could use rookie Eli Stowers as well, because he is a pass catching tight end. And in a game like this, you want to get him some reps and maybe build some confidence, get him the ball. But before we get ahead of ourselves, the Eagles would have to first activate those players. But they were again limited, so no setback there. They were limited on Wednesday as well. And then your full goes were linebacker, Zach Bond shoulder, linebacker, Jahad Campbell knee, wrist, defensive tackle, Jalen Carter wrist, outside linebacker, Arnold Avicade shoulder, safety Marcus Epps groin, tackle Fred Johnson knee, and safety Andrew Maccuba shoulder. Epps is important that he's a full participant because they are light at that position. And Michael Carter again didn't practice with the abdomen injury. So having Epps available is a boost. You also have Kenny Moore, who could potentially jump back there if you need him to play some safety for you. And they have Cooper DeGene and Drew Maccuba. So, not ideal, it's not an ideal group. You're really razor thin there. But I think the fact that you have Epps now on hand helps them a little bit. Even though he hasn't been playing particularly well when he was available. So this has been one heck of a week. Really one heck of a two weeks for the Philadelphia Eagles. And we'll see what Friday holds. We'll see what the injury report bears out. And I'll have all that for you on DiCecco Daily. And of course on insidethebirds.com. That's going to do it for this episode of DiCecco Daily. I'm Andrew DiCecco and I'll catch you all on the next one.